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BREEDERS' CUP WORLD THOROUGHBRED CHAMPIONSHIPSNovember 2, 2013Ryan MooreMichael R. StoutJames WiganARCADIA, CALIFORNIA THE MODERATOR: The winner of the $2 Million Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf is Dank. We're joined now by on the right, jockey Ryan Moore, in the middle, trainer Sir Michael Stoute, and on the left, owner James Wigan. Congratulations to all of you, very impressive run by your filly. Ryan, maybe we'll start with you. You've found a perfect tracking spot. Can you just take us through the race? RYAN MOORE: Well, I thought she was the best filly in the race, and I just thought I'd try to keep it as simple as I could. From that stool, I felt I kind of had some degree of control. I could force him to go on a stride and make a bit of a pace for me. It was just a question of getting in the clear when the time was right. She was the best filly in the race, and she proved that. THE MODERATOR: Sir Michael, can you take us through it from your perspective? SIR MICHAEL R. STOUTE: Yeah, well I was a little bit concerned because I thought she was being a bit too generous early on. But Ryan had to do what he had to do from the 1 draw. And at the end of the day, the result was good and she won. THE MODERATOR: Mr.Wigan, we saw you in Chicago after the Beverly D., you obviously pinpointed this race early on. You must have had high expectations after the Beverly D., and you knew she was primed for a good run today? JAMES WIGAN: She's certainly very impressive in the Beverly D., and she loves the firm ground. We knew we'd get that here, and Ryan has always said this is the place that would suit her. THE MODERATOR: How about the spacing after the Beverly D.? You must have been tempted to run in other spots, but you took a long break and it certainly paid off. SIR MICHAEL R. STOUTE: There was a temptation to run her in the Prix de L'Opera, but we determined that the ground wouldn't be suitable so we'd just bring her here. Q. Mr.Stoute, the Beverly D. was the first Group 1 that Dank won. Now you have an encore in the Breeders' Cup. My question to you is besides the phenomenal improvement she has made, how much of a contribution has Lasix made to her success? SIR MICHAEL R. STOUTE: Well, I think she's been very impressive in Europe as well. At the Curragh when she won her Group 2, she was extremely impressive. But when we came here, we invariably used Lasix. There have been a couple of occasions where it's happened. It's allowable here, so we use it. Q. What can we look forward to from Dank in the future? SIR MICHAEL R. STOUTE: You'll have to ask the owner. Q. Mr.Wigan? JAMES WIGAN: I'll discuss it with Michael, but I think we'll be very tempted, probably, to keep her in training. SIR MICHAEL R. STOUTE: That's a good start. Q. Michael, can you talk about the expectations from your perspective based on what we've seen from her before and coming into the race? SIR MICHAEL R. STOUTE: Well, as Ryan said, that was a good performance in Chicago, a slightly better one today. But she had a better draw there, and we do like it because we came with very high hopes. Second or third wouldn't have been too good. Q. Being that she was coming out of the 1 hole, you mentioned earlier that she had to go a little bit harder, a little bit earlier, so we didn't get to see the explosive turn of foot, necessarily, that we saw in Chicago, but still an impressive effort. SIR MICHAEL R. STOUTE: I think that was a contributing factor, but you'll have to ask the jockey about what she felt like. Q. So maybe I'll do that right now. SIR MICHAEL R. STOUTE: I didn't want him to get tired or bored. Q. Ryan, take us through the start of the race then, breaking from the 1 hole and having to secure position early? RYAN MOORE: As I said, I thought she was the best filly. You know, I'd have rather been drawn there than 6 and out. So I just thought we'll just make the best use of her as we can, and try to move forward and make the others work to come around us. You know, I thought she'd stayed very well. I thought she was the best filly. So we just kept it as straightforward as we could. Q. Your thoughts on how she feels on the firm going versus others? RYAN MOORE: No, you can see it quite clearly from her form that she likes it the quicker the better. When she went to the Curragh, it was very fast that day. That was the first ever Cup that she'd had in this sort of class. Q. Ryan, this has been a very successful North American trip for you winning the Canadian International at Woodbine on Sunday and coming to Santa Anita winning another group and maybe motivated to come today. I know you were riding Dandino in the Melbourne Cup on Tuesday, give us your thoughts, please? RYAN MOORE: Well, impressive in the American ledger and she ran a very good trial in Caulfield. I think he's got a nice stool. In that sort of race, I don't really know what it takes to win it just yet, but he travels and he's got gears. He quickens well. He shuts down as well. So hopefully he's got more attributes, but that sort of race is very hard to work out what you need. Q. What kind of filly personality‑wise, physically, does it take to come over here several times and have her run as well as she does with all the travel and the back and forth and the acclamation? SIR MICHAEL R. STOUTE: With a very, very good team behind her, that is the first thing. We leave nothing to chance where the traveling is concerned, because that is of utmost importance. But she has a great temperament. This is what helps her. A great attitude, very good filly. THE MODERATOR: James, can you talk about your trainer and your jockey and, the way they've prepared and ridden your horse? JAMES WIGAN: Well, they're the best. I couldn't say anything more. They're fantastic. I've got the utmost confidence, and it's lovely to be with them. THE MODERATOR: That is Michael's sixth Breeders' Cup win today; his second in the Filly and Mare Turf. Q. You've got to discuss what you're going to do with her to finalize that. But if you kept her in training, would it be to come back here and try to win again? JAMES WIGAN: I think he would, probably, yes. I'd love to come back. Q. Michael, you won the race with Islington, this filly has good form, maybe not the same high‑profile. Is she someone that's been slightly underrated in Europe? How do you rate her overall? SIR MICHAEL R. STOUTE: I don't think she was at her very best at Royal Ascot. There was an incident just before the race. I think she should be unbeaten this year. If he allows us to keep her going, she'll show them how good she is. Q. With the six wins and all of the new races now in Europe, how do you decide to come over here or not come over here with a certain horse? Is it getting to be a tougher decision to decide where to run this time of year? SIR MICHAEL R. STOUTE: Yes, I mean, you know there are other options. I've always been a great Breeders' Cup fan. She was a year‑end candidate, so there was no soul searching there. But it is a very expensive trip, and we'll have to think about it very, very carefully under different circumstances. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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